WTCC Zolder - Race 1 & 2: They said...

Andy PRIAULX: “It was really nice to see so many spectators supporting the Belgian team so it felt like a home race for me too. It was a similar atmosphere to being at Brands Hatch. Race 1 was much more exciting as after qualifying it was going to be a hard race. I kept attacking Coronel and getting through really was crucial to winning Race 2. I’d love to be able to win Race 1 as well but we just don’t have the pace in qualifying so Race 2 is our only chance of victory at the moment.”

Jordi GENÉ: “It’s been too long since my first win. This season we have had a good car and some possibilities but I always seem to get involved at incidents at the start. So it was very important to get a good start today. I was trying to decide how best and whether or not to go for the lead at the start but in the end I tried down the outside. I knew I could get pushed wide but thankfully Tarquini was very fair and gave me space. I then got into a good rhythm and was able to pull away.”

Gabriele TARQUINI: “Jordi (Gené) is a good guy so at the first corner I was fair. He was on the outside but had good pace to come in. If had been another car and not my teammate I may have held position more strongly. I tried to push a bit too much on the first couple of laps had Jordi had better pace but this maybe because he was on new tyres. I then made two mistakes at the last chicane which cost me time and once I lost the slipstream I had to start defending for a bit.”

Rob HUFF: “It was a tough race as I had to attack Andy (Priaulx) while also defending from Tiago (Monteiro). I tried to find an opportunity to pass at the start but it took time to get the tyres up to temperature and you have to be so careful around here with the kerbs. It’s very tight and fast. My front tyres then went off a bit towards the end. Overall it was a good weekend for us. I’m pleased for the team, it was a cracking race and it’s all very close in the championship now.”

Yvan MULLER: “I was trying to push hard at the start as I knew the car would be good in the first part of the race. I didn’t have enough to overtake (Tarquini) and then I made a mistake. Towards the end I was driving to save my front-left tyre as we had some concerns about it and didn’t want to lose the whole race.”

Tiago MONTEIRO: “It was a perfect way to end the weekend. We had good pace and we were competitive in both races. This track is amazing when you are out on your own. Overall I’m very happy for the team and with the points.”

Norbert MICHELISZ: “It’s all about the standing start. First the revs were too high and I’d tried to correct it and then they dropped too low so i couldn’t get away. You have to see the positives though that I was on the pace of the drivers ahead of me still. I feel the team is working really efficiently and I can explain better to my engineer exactly what I need from the car. Results will come I just need to practice the standing starts. We have the pace though and that is the most important thing.”

Kristian POULSEN: “Last season was tough trying to learn all the circuits but this year I am happy to be on the podium on my second event. I am happy for the team as we had a good race set up so hopefully we can see if we can get some more good results this season now.”

Sergio HERNÁNDEZ: “It is better to win easily but it was a good fight and I’m happy with the team and the car. The championship is our goal we are currently managing to lead so I hope we can continue like this.”